Indictment targets Idaho white supremacy gangs

Federal drug and firearms charges are contained in a new indictment naming 13 alleged members of two white supremacist prison gangs operating in Idaho, authorities announced Thursday. The two gangs, the Aryan Knights and Severely Violent Criminals, carry influence inside the state’s prisons and in various communities in southern Idaho, authorities say. Eleven of the 13 defendants are accused of drug crimes, including distribution of methamphetamine and three counts of conspiracy to distribute the drug, U.S. Attorney Bart Davis said in announcing the charges. Two individuals were indicted for firearms charges, including three counts of unlawful possession of a firearm. Named in the indictment are: Tyler James Campbell, 34, of Boise, Idaho; Jesse Everett Ford, 43, of Kuna, Idaho; Brian Cade Humphreys, 45, of Meridian, Idaho; Jeremy Caine Lyons, 40, of Meridian; Jason Schepers, 33, of Caldwell, Idaho; and Kirstin Decker (aka Kirstin Walz), 39, of Boise. Also indicted were: Jennifer Lee Sayer, 34, of Boise; Kimberly Ann Hale, 39, of Meridian; John Alan Redfern, 48, of Boise; Frank Lee Gorrell, 40, of Boise; Angela Marie Sheldon (aka Angela Marie Junkert), 43, of Boise; Keith Anthony Murphy, 28, of Boise; and Cameron James Ball, 31, of Boise. (…) Gang experts in Idaho tell Hatewatch that the Aryan Knights began in Idaho prisons in the 1990s “as a means to protect whites from other gangs.” In the past decade, the Aryan Knights has evolved into “gang-based business and violence, not only in prison, but on the streets as well,” the experts say. Aryan Knights members tend to be older and use the numbers 1 and 11 signifying “AK” and 208, Idaho’s area code, as tattoo identifiers.